Tag: confidence

Britain’s opposition Labour Party said on Monday it would only launch a motion of no confidence in Prime Minister Theresa May’s government when it felt it would most likely be successful. Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn has come under pressure from some of his own lawmakers to press for a vote of no confidence this week after May delayed a vote on her Brexit agreement with the European Union. “We will put down a motion of no confidence when we judge it most likely to be successful,” a Labour s

Britain’s opposition Labour Party said on Monday it would only launch a motion of no confidence in Prime Minister Theresa May’s government when it felt it would most likely be successful.

Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn has come under pressure from some of his own lawmakers to press for a vote of no confidence this week after May delayed a vote on her Brexit agreement with the European Union.

“We will put down a motion of no confidence when we judge it most likely to be successful,” a Labour spokesperson said in a statement.

The statement said if May returned from Brussels with the same deal “she will have decisively and unquestionably lost the confidence of parliament on the most important issue facing the country, and Parliament will be more likely to bring about the general election our country needs to end this damaging deadlock.”

The dollar fell against the yen on Thursday as growing investor aversion to riskier assets hit equities and pushed down U.S. Treasury yields. Global equity markets have been shaken and the dollar fell this week after an inversion in a part of the U.S. Treasury yield curve triggered market concerns about economic growth. U.S. Treasury yields fell, pressuring the dollar. “Lower Treasury yields are driving the dollar lower against the yen. The euro lost 0.42 percent to 127.85 yen, the Australian do

The dollar fell against the yen on Thursday as growing investor aversion to riskier assets hit equities and pushed down U.S. Treasury yields.

The U.S. currency dropped 0.45 percent to 112.68 yen, handing back its modest gains made overnight.

Global equity markets have been shaken and the dollar fell this week after an inversion in a part of the U.S. Treasury yield curve triggered market concerns about economic growth.

Adding to the jitters on Thursday was the arrest in Canada of a top executive of Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies, fanning fears of a flare-up in tensions between China and the United States just as the two sides are supposed to be resuming trade negotiations.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 1.93 percent and Japan’s Nikkei lost more than 2 percent.

U.S. Treasury yields fell, pressuring the dollar.

“Lower Treasury yields are driving the dollar lower against the yen. It is difficult to pinpoint how much funds investors have transferred from equities to bonds in the recent risk aversion and it is too early to call a bottom for Treasury yields,” said Yukio Ishizuki, senior currency strategist at Daiwa Securities.

The 10-year Treasury yield last stood at 2.8829 percent.

Signals from the Federal Reserve last week that it may be nearing an end to its three-year rate hiking cycle have helped trigger the slide in Treasury yields.

The spread between the two-year and five-year Treasury yields inverted this week and the two-year/10-year spread was at its flattest in more than a decade amid a sharp fall in long-term rates.

A flatter curve is seen as an indicator of a slowing economy, with lower longer-dated yields suggesting a potential recession down the road.

“The dollar could remain under pressure until this month’s Fed meeting as long-term Treasury yields may not be able to mount a rebound until the market sees the Fed’s stance on policy and the economy,” said Junichi Ishikawa, senior FX strategist at IG Securities in Tokyo.

“The recent reaction to the U.S. yield curve inversion appears a little hysterical, but the dollar will not be given the all clear sign until the Fed meeting is hurdled.”

Fed policymakers are still widely expected to raise interest rates again at their Dec 18-19 meeting, but the market focus is on how many rate hikes will follow in 2019.

The yen, often sought in times of market unrest, made strides against other peers as well.

The euro lost 0.42 percent to 127.85 yen, the Australian dollar slumped 1.02 percent to 81.44 yen and the pound fell 0.55 percent to 143.33 yen.

The euro was little changed at $1.1346 after retreating from this week’s high of $1.1419 scaled on Tuesday.

The Australian dollar, sensitive to swings in risk sentiment, was down 0.58 percent at $0.7226.

The Aussie was already on a shaky footing after shedding nearly 1 percent the previous day on weaker-than-expected third quarter Australian gross domestic product data.

The pound was a shade lower at $1.2723.

Sterling had sunk to a 17-month low of $1.2659 at one point on Tuesday after parliamentary setbacks for Prime Minister Theresa May.

Credit rating agency Fitch downgraded Sri Lanka on Tuesday, citing refinancing risks and an uncertain policy outlook, after President Maithripala Sirisena’s sacking of his prime minister in October triggered a political crisis. The move, criticized by the country’s central bank, comes two weeks after a similar downgrade by Moody’s. “We have to come out of this dragging political crisis. The central bank said both Fitch and Moody’s have been too hasty in their decisions. Such uncertainties could

Credit rating agency Fitch downgraded Sri Lanka on Tuesday, citing refinancing risks and an uncertain policy outlook, after President Maithripala Sirisena’s sacking of his prime minister in October triggered a political crisis.

The move, criticized by the country’s central bank, comes two weeks after a similar downgrade by Moody’s.

A bitter row over the sacking of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in October and the competing influences of China and India have shattered the island’s fragile ruling coalition.

The rating agency said the downgrade, by one notch to B from B+, reflects the risk of a slowdown in debt reduction as a result of the crisis, noting Sri Lanka has a heavy external debt repayment schedule between 2019 and 2022.

“Investor confidence has been undermined, as evident from large outflows from the local bond market and a depreciating exchange rate,” Fitch said in a statement.

The rating agency said that plans to raise funds through bilateral and commercial borrowing, or through the exercise of foreign currency swaps, could be challenging in the current political climate. The 2019 budget has already been pushed back.

“It is a mess at the moment,” an official in the country’s finance ministry told Reuters, adding the downgrade would raise borrowing costs by a few percent.

“We have to come out of this dragging political crisis. The borrowing cost is anyway going to rise with this,” said the official, who declined to be named.

The central bank said both Fitch and Moody’s have been too hasty in their decisions.

“We are of the view that actions by both rating agencies are too hasty as their decisions are based on short term political uncertainties. Such uncertainties could be very short lived only for couple of weeks,” Central Bank Senior Deputy Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe told Reuters.

The rupee currency has weakened nearly 17 percent so far this year, while yields on Sri Lanka’s dollar bonds due in 2022 have risen by more than a percentage point to 8.24 percent since the crisis began.

China’s central bank will keep its monetary policy flexible and appropriately adjust it according to changes in the country’s economic situation, bank governor Yi Gang said in a magazine article published late on Monday. Yi said that tools he described as a “slow release of air” and “soft landing” must be used when the economy begins overheating or a bubble in asset prices starts developing, but that financial markets must be stabilised and public confidence enhanced if a recession or external s

China’s central bank will keep its monetary policy flexible and appropriately adjust it according to changes in the country’s economic situation, bank governor Yi Gang said in a magazine article published late on Monday.

Yi said that tools he described as a “slow release of air” and “soft landing” must be used when the economy begins overheating or a bubble in asset prices starts developing, but that financial markets must be stabilised and public confidence enhanced if a recession or external shock occurred.

China’s central bank has recently eased monetary policy in the face of slowing economic and credit growth, with moves that included bringing down market interest rates and four cuts in bank reserve requirements so far this year.

Yi made his comments in an article in the China Finance magazine, which is published by the People’s Bank of China, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of its landmark economic reforms and opening up under former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping.

He also said the central bank would continue to promote the opening up of China’s financial industry to technology, improve governance and develop a macro policy framework that will enhance international confidence in the renminbi.

The German economy is cooling down. That is the standout assessment from a key business climate survey, published by the Munich-based Ifo Institute on Monday. The Ifo Business Climate Index fell to 102.0 points in November from 102.9 points in October, marking its third consecutive decrease. Speaking to CNBC’s “Street Signs” shortly after the release, the institute’s president, Clemens Fuest, said sentiment among German businesses had obviously weakened as activity had slowed. “There are clear s

China’s massive consumer base is feeling a chill that could have ripple effects throughout an economy that’s already under pressure. While analysts say individuals are generally financially healthy, many are holding off on spending due to uncertainty about the future. He used to be the chief economist at Mizuho Securities Asia. “Everyone’s confidence, confidence in this year’s situation, has declined, (and) consumption was immediately impacted,” Shen said in Mandarin on Tuesday, according to a C

China’s massive consumer base is feeling a chill that could have ripple effects throughout an economy that’s already under pressure.

While analysts say individuals are generally financially healthy, many are holding off on spending due to uncertainty about the future.

“A decline in consumption is the biggest risk, because everyone already knows about the decline in investment, everyone also knows about the trade tensions,” said Jian Guang Shen, chief economist at JD Digits, which was spun off from Chinese e-commerce company JD.com. He used to be the chief economist at Mizuho Securities Asia.

“Everyone’s confidence, confidence in this year’s situation, has declined, (and) consumption was immediately impacted,” Shen said in Mandarin on Tuesday, according to a CNBC translation. “In the next couple of months, consumption will continue to slow.”

Already, retail sales fell to a disappointing 8.6 percent in October. That contrasts with past years which generally saw near-10 percent growth or higher.

Macy’s shares had rallied more than 80 percent over a 12-month period heading into its third-quarter earnings report last week. To win back investors’ confidence, Macy’s has three key things to prove this holiday season. First, it needs to show it can still grow same-store sales — a closely watched gauge of a retailer’s performance. The company has reported four consecutive quarters of same-store sales growth, as its turnaround initiatives have started to gain traction. “Several things give me c

When its Thanksgiving Day Parade ends, the real work begins for Macy’s.

The department store chain has much to prove during the holidays if it wants to keep the momentum, generated by its latest turnaround plans, going strong.

Macy’s shares had rallied more than 80 percent over a 12-month period heading into its third-quarter earnings report last week. Although the retailer’s results largely topped analysts’ expectations and it raised its full-year earnings forecast, its stock sold off, ending the day down a little more than 7 percent. The drop is a sign that investors are unsure if there’s still room for growth ahead for Macy’s, or if the best is already behind it.

To win back investors’ confidence, Macy’s has three key things to prove this holiday season. First, it needs to show it can still grow same-store sales — a closely watched gauge of a retailer’s performance. The company has reported four consecutive quarters of same-store sales growth, as its turnaround initiatives have started to gain traction. But that also means Macy’s is facing a tougher comparison with last year’s performance.

Secondly, it needs to hit its goal to grow mobile sales to $1 billion by the end of the year. And third, the retailer must keep inventory in check during the holiday quarter without promoting merchandise too steeply, which can weigh on profits.

Former Facebook director Donald Graham sees a lot of work ahead of the social media giant to clean up misinformation of the platform, but he expressed confidence in its leadership. “Facebook’s got a big job cleaning it up,” the former Washington Post publisher and current Graham Holdings chairman said in an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Tuesday. Graham said he still believes in Zuckerberg and Sandberg to lead the company out of the past year’s series of scandals. “I believe as strongly as

Former Facebook director Donald Graham sees a lot of work ahead of the social media giant to clean up misinformation of the platform, but he expressed confidence in its leadership.

“Facebook’s got a big job cleaning it up,” the former Washington Post publisher and current Graham Holdings chairman said in an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Tuesday.

A New York Times investigation last week alleged that CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Chief Operation Officer Sheryl Sandberg resisted efforts to investigate Russian activity on Facebook quickly enough.

Graham said he still believes in Zuckerberg and Sandberg to lead the company out of the past year’s series of scandals. “I believe as strongly as I can in the two people working to fix it,” he said.

When asked whether Facebook’s advertising model is still right for the social media company, Graham said, “I don’t see another model that remotely could build today’s Facebook.” He reaffirmed his confidence in the company by saying that unlike some of its tech peers, including Google and Amazon, “nobody needs to go on Facebook unless they find it enjoyable or useful.”

Homebuilder confidence plummets to the lowest level in more than 2 years 10:36 AM ET Mon, 19 Nov 2018 | 01:05Rising mortgage rates and continued home price growth are hurting affordability and fast becoming a toxic cocktail for the nation’s homebuilders. Sentiment among homebuilders dropped 8 points in November to 60 in the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. That is the lowest reading since August 2016, but anything above 50 is still considered positive. Buye

Rising mortgage rates and continued home price growth are hurting affordability and fast becoming a toxic cocktail for the nation’s homebuilders.

Sentiment among homebuilders dropped 8 points in November to 60 in the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. That is the lowest reading since August 2016, but anything above 50 is still considered positive. The index stood at 69 in November of last year and hit a cyclical high of 74 last December.

“Builders report that they continue to see signs of consumer demand for new homes but that customers are taking a pause due to concerns over rising interest rates and home prices,” said NAHB Chairman Randy Noel, a builder from LaPlace, Louisiana.

Of the index’s three components, current sales conditions fell 7 points to 67, sales expectations in the next six months dropped 10 points to 65, and buyer traffic registered an 8-point drop to 45. Buyer traffic had broken out of negative territory earlier this year but now appears to be back in it solidly.

Some of the nation’s largest publicly traded homebuilders, like Lennar and KB Home, lowered their expectations for sales in 2019 in recent earnings releases. There is still a shortage of homes for sale, but newly built homes come at a price premium, and as interest rates rise, new home buyers are consequently hit hardest.